This is more along the lines of what we're used to seeing from the Patriots at the receiver spot.
When they traded Brandin Cooks to the Rams, they jettisoned their highly-paid speedster, and in his absence the team now has what looks to be a wide-open competition between players who are collectively guaranteed very little in terms of salary.
Jordan Matthews, whose contract details were reported by SI's Albert Breer on Monday, is the latest addition to the race for roster spots.
Outside of the Randy Moss Era and the 2012 season when Wes Welker played on the franchise tag, this has generally been the way Bill Belichick has handled this position: Throw myriad, relatively low-cost options at the wall and see what sticks.
Remember the training camp depth charts at receiver for the Patriots during each of their last two Super Bowl-winning seasons?
New England Patriots
In 2014, their big-money receiver was Danny Amendola, whose base salary was $3 million. (He restructured his deal for the first time after that year.) Julian Edelman and Brandon LaFell were the other roster locks. Then there was a melange of players including Aaron Dobson, Brian Tyms, Josh Boyce, Kenbrell Thompkins, Jeremy Gallon and others duking it out for the remaining jobs.
In 2016, Edelman headlined the group. He was joined by restricted free agent pickup Chris Hogan and Amendola, who was back after restructuring his deal a second time. Of that trio, Edelman was the only one whose base salary exceeded $2 million. (Hogan had a roster bonus worth $4.5 million that year, making him the high earner at the position that season.) Then Dobson, Malcolm Mitchell, Keshawn Martin, Chris Harper, Nate Washington and others fought it out for gigs.
The Patriots have generally had room for five receivers plus special teams captain Matthew Slater on their 53-man rosters. If they stick with that plan, the competition for spots should be fierce this summer. The math is easy. There will be a big name or two who don’t last.
Edelman, coming off of a season-ending ACL tear, will be on the roster if healthy. Ditto for Hogan, who is headed into a contract year. Slater should be back as well after re-signing this offseason.
Other than that? It's anyone's guess as to who fills the last few openings.
Kenny Britt is reportedly expected to do "big things," but his contract ($150,000 dead money if cut, per OverTheCap.com) doesn't lock him into a roster spot. Phillip Dorsett was fine in a supporting role last year, but he could be released at no cost if he doesn't win a job. The $170,000 guaranteed to Matthews won't stop the Patriots from cutting him if he's not a fit in New England. And Cordarrelle Patterson, acquired from the Raiders in exchange for minimal draft-pick compensation, won't be considered a must-have come cut-down day unless he's made himself indispensable as a special-teamer.
Mitchell missed his entire second season due to a knee injury, but one would think he'd have another shot at the roster if healthy given what he showed as a rookie. Does that make him the front-runner for the No. 3 role, behind Edelman and Hogan? If so, then there might be only two spots for Britt, Dorsett, Matthews and Patterson.
My guess is that Patterson's abilities in the kicking game could place him into a separate category, like Slater, as more core special-teamer than receiver.
So for the sake of this exercise, let's say there are five spots available outside of the two specialists who technically qualify as wideouts. Even then, that would leave just three spots for Mitchell, Britt, Dorsett and Matthews. Young receivers like Riley McCarron and Cody Hollister could potentially push for jobs as well. And we haven't even mentioned the draft. The Patriots have reportedly been doing their due diligence on some of the top receivers available, including Maryland's DJ Moore, Texas A&M's Christian Kirk and SMU's Courtland Sutton.
In the end, injuries will have a say on who makes the active roster. As will playing styles. If the Patriots want size on the outside, Britt could be safe. If it's speed they’re after, pencil in Dorsett. Matthews would be best suited for the slot if the need is there.
The picture at receiver for the Patriots is hazy now, but one thing is clear: The competition for jobs in camp should be hot because they have a whole mess of low-cost options.